'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Ciryl Gane believes his upcoming opponent Francis Ngannou hasn't improved much since leaving the MMA Factory gym in Paris.
UFC heavyweight champion Ngannou trained in France under coach Fernand Lopez before making the switch to the Xtreme Couture MMA gym in Las Vegas three years ago. He is currently being coached by Eric Nicksick.
Meanwhile, interim UFC heavyweight titleholder Gane has trained at Lopez's MMA Factory his entire professional career, which began when he transitioned from Muay Thai to MMA in 2018.
During an interview with MMA Junkie's Farah Hannoun, Gane was asked how much 'The Predator' has improved since joining his new team. 'Bon Gamin' stressed that the champion has always been this good physically and has only improved mentally, which has resulted in his recent success.
"Not too much because the people like to say yeah he did improve a lot on his last fight. But you know Francis Ngannou improved a lot already in the MMA Factory. But he had something in his mind. It was just that. But when you know Fernand Lopez, this is not the tactic. The people think, 'Yeah you just improve of that.' But no worries. He did a lot in MMA factory... His only strategy was to knock out the guys. But now with his new team, I don't know what the team did but they did very well. Because now he's managing more with the [mental] situation. So that's worked. He has improved on that."
Watch Ciryl Gane in conversation with Farah Hannoun below:
Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane will face off in a heavyweight title unification bout in the main event of UFC 270. The event, which is set for January 22, will be the first pay-per-view of 2022.
Francis Ngannou is ranked No.4 in the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings, while Ciryl Gane is No.15
Francis Ngannou (16-3) is on a five-fight winning streak in the UFC right now. He's yet to be finished in his MMA career and has accumulated 12 knockout victories.
'The Predator' beat Stipe Miocic in their rematch at UFC 260 in March this year. The brutal knockout saw Ngannou claim a professional MMA championship for the first time in his career.
Ciryl Gane (10-0), on the other hand, is unbeaten at 10-0. He overcame Derrick Lewis via TKO at UFC 265 in August to win the interim heavyweight title.
The upcoming opponents recently crossed paths backstage at UFC 268. In a video that went viral last weekend, Francis Ngannou can be seen walking past Gane and his former coach without even acknowledging the pair.
